US 96.3 Jackson, MS “Nate, Traci & Hannah Lane” morning co-host Hannah Lane has recently exploded onto the Country radio scene. When talking to the Baton Rouge native, it is easy to see why. Her enthusiasm for the radio industry, Country music, and life comes through loud and clear.
Lane came to radio in a non-traditional way.
“I went to school for pharmaceutical sales; that was my plan. I worked at a boutique in my hometown for about six and a half years. And I did all the videos on Facebook Live. I was known as that in my little hometown.”
“And one day this girl walks in. Her name is Brittany Rose. She works at 100.7 The Tiger in Baton Rouge. She said, ‘I’m shopping for an outfit. It’s my birthday tomorrow and we’re going to see Morgan Wallen.’ I was like, I’m so jealous of you.”
“She said I work for the radio station here. We might have extra tickets. I said, no you do not. She says yeah, I do blah blah whatever. I thought people tell you that, and she’s never going to call me. The next day, she messaged me on Facebook and told me she was going to bring us the tickets. I sat in the nosebleeds at Morgan Wallen, and it was the best night of my life. That is how my radio career started.”
From there, it was a weekend shift on The Tiger, which led to her morning show co-host position at US 96.3.
“They ended up needing somebody to take pictures for them in Nashville for Sharla McCoy’s live broadcast. It was very last-minute. Thank God Sharla has the heart that she has, because she said, you know what, let her come.”
“I came in, I started talking to everybody because I would talk to a wall that talks back to me, and that is how I met (her current co-hosts) Nate and Traci. They offered me a morning position, and it took off from there.”
The past year has been a bit of a whirlwind for Lane.
“I’ll never forget people looking at me and saying we’re going to take a chance on you and we’re going to make it work. This past year, there are no words to explain it. I’ve gotten Women To Watch in Radio; I won 30 and Under Rising Superstar. Then I was named one of the top five New Faces in Country radio for CRS. I became the first-ever mentee in Mississippi for Women Inspiring Women.”
All that led to a chance to check something off her bucket list.
“I’m about to go host the stage at the Grand Ole Opry.”
That came about when the Grand Ole Opry’s SVP/Executive Producer, Dan Rogers, came to the McCoy interviews.
“I was just talking to him. I was so amazed at what he does, and I said what a bucket list item to host the Opry. That’s something I really want to do in my career, obviously down the road. He literally looked at me and said, ‘we’ll make it happen.”’
“They let me pick a date, and I still can’t believe that it’s coming out of my mouth that I’m going to be hosting the first day of the Opry 100-year celebration. It’s just crazy.”
“You know, when you don’t feel like something’s real yet. It’s hard to wrap your head around the fact that it’s happening. I’ve read all the comments, and I do try to like comment back to everybody because I feel like if you take the time to support me, I want to take the time to get back to you or at least acknowledge that you’re on my Facebook.”
With Lane’s career screaming down the fast track, what advice can she offer other young talents thinking about radio as a career?
“It takes people to want to sit there and help you learn it. Help you like it or let you make mistakes. If people were mad if you made a mistake or something, I wouldn’t have had so much Joy and excitement that I do working with Nate and Traci.
“I got to come into a company, and I don’t say this lightly, where our owner, Clay Holladay, has been one of my biggest supporters. And I go in and I’m very bold, I have a big personality.”
“I think sometimes people try to dim that a little bit, but I walked into this company and I don’t feel like anybody tried to dim that. I feel like they took it and maybe tried to contain it a little bit. This is the direction we need to go.”
“You can’t walk into a building thinking that you don’t belong. Don’t be cocky. Don’t be arrogant. When you start, have that confidence in yourself. Sometimes, our generation thinks that we know everything. Not open to learning. A big thing for me was that I do belong here, but I’m open to learning just as much as I’m open to teaching things.”
“I’ve had two great companies that have just helped me and the community of Country music. There have been so many people who have just been so kind to me and have been really encouraging. It’s been super cool to see.”
“Take a chance on yourself, because if you don’t, you never know where it can go. I wouldn’t be here today if people didn’t take a chance on me, or if I didn’t take a chance on myself and make a move.”
Follow Hannah Lane on Facebook here.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.
Jeff Lynn serves as Editor of Barrett Media’s Music Radio coverage. Prior to joining Barrett Media, Jeff spent time programming in Milwaukee, Omaha, Cleveland, Des Moines, and Madison for multiple radio groups, including iHeartMedia, Townsquare Media, NRG Media, and Entercom (now Audacy). He also worked as a Country Format Editor for All Access until the outlet shut down in August 2023.
To get in touch with Jeff by email, reach him at Jeff@BarrettMedia.com.
That’s my girl! 👏👏👏 🤩